Need help with Sora's behaviour

XRubyRoseX · 01-20-2015, 04:23 PM

I'm not sure whether this is particularly normal for a Syrian or whether it's just Sora (I mean I guess it's probably to do with the fact she's pretty old I guess and spent all her life in pets at home and presumably not a very good home before here with not many toys etc), but no matter what all she does when she's awake is just jump at the sides of her cage or climb everything. We've bought her so many different toys and she doesn't use them, just climbs on them to try and get to the top of her cage to escape. Literally she'll spend most of her time up doing this and we've tried everything and she just won't stop. We get her out loads and as soon as she's back in she's doing it again. I mean surely this can't be fun right? I know Syrians like to climb and try and escape or whatever but this is all the time climbing on absolutely anything and everything, she's not even fussed about her toys she just climbs on them. It's just like she constantly wants to be out all the time and obviously that's not possible, I just don't know what to do. I want her to be happy, but surely she can't be when she spends 99% of her time in her cage just jumping up at her cage walls. I just feel like it's not healthy for her to be doing it like she does, it seems like really obsessive behaviour, put it like this she jumps at the sides of her cage more than she runs on her wheel, she has so many toys and loads of substrate and like I say we honestly have her out so much (I feel she gets way more attention than Pocky and Yuki and to be honest I feel sometimes I have to ignore them to get her out to keep her happy and to stop her jumping). I just really am not sure what to do, it stresses me out because she just doesn't seem happy

XRubyRoseX · 01-20-2015, 10:52 PM

I really feel like I can't cope with this anymore

. I have to sleep with earplugs in because she's so loud but she still managed to keep me up all night just chewing on her wheel. I'm not even joking she has so many different things to chew on and she's just sat all night chewing on the back of her wheel. I'm just getting really stressed out about this now, I feel like I can't cope with looking after her, but then I don't want to be one of these people that just puts their hamsters up for adoption because of a stupid reason but urgh. I really don't know what to do, don't get me wrong I absolutely love her to pieces but I've spent so much time and money on her and I just don't know what to do. She's just so loud and I'm starting to get sleeping problems because of it and I can't move her to another room, she just constantly jumps up at the side of her cage and I just wish she'd stop and do something else but she doesn't. I just feel like such a terrible person and a terrible owner right now but I feel like I'm breaking down, she's really keeping me awake with all this noise and it seems like she intentionally does it to get attention but I don't know what more I can do i get her out whenever I can and just right now I really can't cope with her noise and her behaviour and I really do feel horrible like I don't want to have to find her a new home because the start of her life has been rubbish and I don't want the end to be either, but then I don't want to have to spend every single night for the rest of her life stressing out and getting so worked up about her

really really need help :'(

LoveMyHams · 01-20-2015, 11:02 PM

If she was living in a cage with no toys before this is a learned behavior. It will be tough to change. Since she is getting lots of attention and exercise you could take the wheel out when you go to bed. I have a wheel chewer so I put little plastic tubes over the base so she can't get to them as easily to chew. I also keep my hams in the livingroom so I have some distance (and a fan going) between us.

cypher · 01-21-2015, 12:08 AM

Sorry I don't actually have any useful advice not having experienced anything like this but I just want to say I know how much you care for your hams, it's obvious you really do love them & do your very best for them so please don't feel bad, I'm totally sure none of this is your fault & you are definitely not a bad person, you're just at your wits end!
I really hope someone can offer some constructive advice that will help resolve this behaviour problem, good luck with her.

Piebald · 01-21-2015, 01:37 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by LoveMyHams

If she was living in a cage with no toys before this is a learned behavior. It will be tough to change. Since she is getting lots of attention and exercise you could take the wheel out when you go to bed. I have a wheel chewer so I put little plastic tubes over the base so she can't get to them as easily to chew. I also keep my hams in the livingroom so I have some distance (and a fan going) between us.

I haven't experience but this sounds likely.
Is there any way you can think of to use her behavior rather then trying to change it? For example, put some thing on the bars to help her climb but maybe more quietly? What on the wheel is she chewing? A picture may help with suggestions. I feel your frustration. Get yourself some earplugs and a white noise CD. I hate to say it but she may be mentally damaged by her previous life experience.

XRubyRoseX · 01-21-2015, 01:57 AM

She's in a bin cage so there are no bars, she just throws herself at the walls to try and climb/jump on them, this is what she did in pets at home. When I first saw her they were just putting her into the cage, her behaviour really concerned me which is why I adopted her, she would try and climb like she does now and also try and climb up her bottle which she still does, along with digging frantically in the corner which she also does (I pile loads of substrate up in the corners for her though). I try to give her toys she can climb on, she's got a wooden cabin that she can get to the roof of, a medium bendy bridge, a platform and I've just added a climbing platform toy with different levels and bells on it but she just climbs on top then continues to try to climb the cage, she also climbs on her wheel too. She has a wooden wonderland wheel and she's just started chewing the back bit where the wheel goes on. Like I say she's got about 4 proper chew toys, along with all her other wooden and cardboard things plus we give her whimzees and monkey nuts but she has started to chew her wheel which I need to get her to stop. When I take the wheel out on a night it makes her climbing and noise a lot worse, I guess then it's because she doesn't have the option of running. I'll put some photos of her cage etc on later but when she's out she goes in like a cardboard box which has her flying saucer in along with other tubes and boxes to play In, she's got a ball but she doesn't particularly like it unfortunately.

Willow Wisp · 01-21-2015, 02:47 AM

How long have you had her Ruby? And how long has she been in the bin cage?
Could she still be settling in? Some do take longer than others to settle and some like my Ebony are just sort of hyper and into mischief all of the time. I also found that both my girls hated the bin, I bought one originally with the idea of attaching it to Willows cage, she detested it, she spent the whole time window washing and climbing trying to escape so eventually I gave up with it. I got Ebony on a bank holiday weekend and her cage delivery was delayed because of the shutdown so I used the bin for her for a few days, she hated it too, and then when her cage finally arrived she had eaten her way out of it within 2weeks!
I like you, was really upset with everything. Don't get me wrong, I'm not saying your bin is the problem, just that some of us have also felt the way your feeling, so don't think your alone because honestly your not

My Ebony is gorgeous, I love her enormously but she is still a monster, it looks like this is just her personality as she doesn't appear to be growing out of it and I am partly managing her antics by wearing her out, I'm wondering if maybe you could try wearing Sora out in the evenings so when you go to bed she is also tired and will sleep a little then?
I'm constantly trying to come up with different things to tire Ebonys brain, lots of hunting for treats, lots of running in the exercise ball, lots of time in the playpen with things to climb and destroy, but she still constantly chews at the wood lining we had to put in her cage to cover the plastic cage base she ate through and stop her escaping, her millions of chew toys are mainly ignored in favour of looking for an escape route. Others have suggested putting her in a tank to stop this but I know that won't work because of the constant window washing when she used the bin.
So Ruby, Sora's behaviour isn't because of anything you have or haven't done, and apart from actively keeping her up and trying to tire her out when you are up so she will sleep when you want to sleep I haven't any other suggestions, but I do feel your pain, and you are not alone xx

XRubyRoseX · 01-21-2015, 03:38 AM

I've had her since the 6th of December so going on two months now, and she's been in her current cage for pretty much all the time we've had her. And I'll try to make her more tired I guess it could work, seems like a good idea

. I still have the small sized wire cage from pets at home, I used to use the wire top on the floor to contain Miso when I had him, he liked climbing so I used to let him climb the bars on that cage for a but during his playtime, so I might try that with Sora.
Thank you though Willow Wisp, I'm feeling a little better this morning. I'll try and think of some new things to wear her out. I'd like to hang some ladders or something in her cage but I feel the mesh window on her lid wouldn't support the weight.

XRubyRoseX · 01-21-2015, 04:13 AM

This is how her cage is at the moment, she had a sand bath yesterday but just chewed the plastic tub so until I can find something else like a glass baking dish or something I can't give her one. She also has some other little toys but she has them stashed in her bed underneath the platform. The bendy bridge is the medium sized one and I'm also going to try and get some plastic tubes to put inside as her large cardboard one is a bit squished now

We've also been talking about maybes seeing if we can move her downstairs during a night for a couple of weeks, then she might stop the attention seeking behaviour over a night.

cypher · 01-21-2015, 04:42 AM

I know it would be a risk as she could turn out to be a bar chewer & just try to escape but I can't help wondering if she might do better in a barred cage, it would be easier to give her more to do, more distraction & stimulus with hanging toys, hammocks, small ledges you could make it safe for her to climb rather than throwing herself at the sides of her cage.